Top 10 Good Things About the Pearl's "Richard II"

ALL ABOUT EVE Grant Goodman, left, as Henry Bolingbroke, and Sean McNall as King Richard in the Pearl Theater's "Richard II" at City Center.

THE Drama Desk Award-winning Pearl Theater's current production is "Richard II," the Shakespearean tragedy (not to be confused with "Richard III") of a man who came to the throne of England at the age of 10, loved power too well and was at least a little bit nuts -- somewhere between narcissist and schizophrenic.

Theatergossip.com doesn't review per se, but here are a few thoughts on why "Richard II," which is around for another two and a half weeks, might be worth your while.

1. Sean McNall's performance in the title role. Imagine Michael J. Fox as a cocky 14th-century Plantagenet king of England who loses his job.

2. John of Gault's speech that begins "This royal throne of kings, this sceptered isle" and ends "This blessed plot, this earth, this realm, this England."

3. J. R. Sullivan's direction, which seems to have achieved that rarity: being sure every cast member understands every single Elizabethan word he or she speaks.

{READ MORE: The full text of the play.}

4. Richard's line "For God's sake, let us sit upon the ground and tell sad stories of the death of kings."

5. The play's past record of getting no film respect. Not a single American feature film version in the history of cinema! (According to IMDB, at least.) There have been eight TV versions.

6. Richard's line "I wasted time, and now doth time waste me."

{READ MORE: About the Pearl Theater Company}

7. The play's past record of getting no New York stage respect. There have been six Broadway productions since 1878, but none have lasted longer than four months (and that was in 1937).

8. Harry Feiner's rusticity-with-stained-glass set.

9. Being prepared for the 2012 BBC version with Ben Whishaw as Richard, Patrick Stewart as John of Gaunt and Rory Kinnear as Bolingbroke.

{READ MORE: About the BBC "Richard II"}

10. Stephen Petrilli's lighting and Martha Hally's costumes. O.K., that's 11.


"Richard II," by William Shakespeare, directed by J. R. Sullivan, City Center Stage II, 131 East 55th Street, (212) 581-1212, nycitycenter.org. Closing night: Dec. 24, 2011.

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